


All the King's Horses and All the Fox's Men

by knox_moreau



Category: All For The Game - Nora Sakavic
Genre: Alternate Universe, Multi, X-men Inspired
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-03-15
Updated: 2017-03-15
Packaged: 2018-10-05 13:35:46
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,274
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10309259
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/knox_moreau/pseuds/knox_moreau
Summary: Find my tumblr @honeymoreau for extra content on this fic! Thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoy!





	

Neil Josten inhaled the smell of smoke without putting the cigarette to his lips. His eyes were tempted to a close by the tranquility of the night, his brain pulling the image of the burning car back to his senses. The sand underneath his feet, the smoke filling his lungs, and his mother. His eyelids burned red from the fire before opening to find it turn into the lights of the baseball field. He sat up on the cool, metal bleachers and stared at the stars, the dots of light that shone into his brown colored contacts. 

Neil’s neck snapped around at impressive speed when he heard a twig underfoot, the crunch of multiple pairs of shoes walking through the grass. He scanned the large, open field for the best exit to slip through, a self-taught reflex of his brain. 

“Neil,” a voice Neil recognized as the baseball coach of the school whose bleachers he sat on. “There are some visitors here for you, and they want to talk to your parents.” 

Neil Josten’s heart pounded from both the run down the steps and the fight or flight sense still roaring in his ears and head. The town of Millport was a handful of people away from being an abandoned town, making it an easy target to be a hiding spot for Neil. He camped out in houses up for sale, the kind you knew would never be sold, yet it was still a risk. Existing was a risk for Neil.

Two tall forms emerged into the light behind Coach Hernandez. Neil positioned himself to run.

“Neil,” the coach said slowly in a soft voice as if any word he said wrong would make Neil bolt, “this is David Wymack and Kevin Day.” Neil knew who Kevin was. 

Kevin Day was living legend, an urban myth of sorts. The myth of Kevin was that he could teleport. That somehow he went from the east coast of the United States to several states away in less than a minute. That he’d escaped many an impossible situation in one blink. That he could stand in front of you and disappear, all 6 feet of him. He was an idol of some kind to Neil, proof than Neil was not the only one like them. 

Neil knew what “them” was, but opted to ignore it. Except, having Kevin Day and a strange man with tribal tattoos clawing up his arms in front of him, he figured it’d be a little harder to ignore. 

“My parents are out of town,” Neil tried for nonchalance and failed. It was a small lie compared to every other one. 

“I’ll leave it up to Mr. Wymack for what he wants to do then,” the coach nodded sagely before turning his back and treading through the dewy grass that stuck to his shoes. 

“Well, as he said, I’m David Wymack,” the man with the tattoos stuck a calloused hand out to Neil, and in response, Neil’s body tensed. He did not shake his hand. Instead, Neil clutched at the straps of his duffel bag slung over his shoulder.  
“Also, as he said, this is Kevin Day,” Wymack introduced the younger guy beside him. Of course, he wouldn’t know Neil knew who he was. And Neil didn’t plan on telling him. Neil’s only plan he had was to lie and run; it was the only plan he ever needed. 

“Why are you here?” Neil finally found his voice to ask. Again, Neil failed at nonchalance. 

“To put it bluntly, we’re here because we’ve heard of you and your powers.”

Neil did not stay to listen for more. He bolted, his body a blur from how fast he moved. His abnormally fast legs sped him straight around the bleachers, right into a fist. Neil was knocked backwards with as much or more force than he’d been running with, and his body limply went flying across the field. He landed on his side in a crumple of limbs and groans. 

“Andrew, would you try not to destroy all our potential recruits?” Neil vaguely made out the voice of Wymack. He didn’t know who Andrew was, but he figured it out when his eyes opened themselves again and were met with the grinning face of a blonde boy. ‘Boy’ didn’t quite seem the right word to capture just how deranged his expression seemed. 

“I didn’t destroy him, Professor. See?” the blonde boy Neil now recognized kicked his back for emphasis on how not-destroyed Neil was. Neil coughed violently, a shudder of his entire body ensuing. “Well, a few stitches wouldn’t hurt.”

After Neil blinked the world into clearer vision, he got a good look at the blonde’s face. He was positive he recognized who this was, not for the same reasons as he did Kevin. The deranged face belonged to Andrew Minyard, juvie veteran and something more confirmed than a rumor. Andrew was one of what the news called a “mutant,” and he was very openly one as well. 

Most mutants, a slang term for individuals with extra abilities, were underground due to the amount of the population that hated them as well as the extremists that hunted them. Some for sport, some for “safety.” To normal people, Andrew Minyard was the face of what mutants acted like. To Neil, it didn’t matter. All he knew he had to do was run. 

Wymack simply gave Andrew a look before crouching above Neil. “Look, kid, I know it’s hard to believe now, but we’re not actually here to hurt you,” he spoke in a mildly irritated but resigned voice.“Are you going to hear me out about this offer we’re trying to give you?” 

Neil carefully eyed Wymack, and only then did it occur to Neil that Andrew had called him “professor.” He chided himself for not remembering the rumor sooner: David Wymack ran a special sort of school, one for people the media thought of as gifted. The media was only informed “gifted” equated to “smart.” The rumor was that “gifted” equated to a nicer synonym for “mutant.”

After this entire encounter, Neil was inclined to believe it was more than a rumor. 

Neil slowly nodded his head, wincing in pain at the minimal movement. 

“Alright then. I’m sure you’ve heard of Wymack’s School for Gifted Youngsters,” Wymack paused for Neil to nod and continued once he did. “ I’m the same Wymack, one and probably not only. Our offer here is that you can enroll in our school, have protection from whatever it is you’re running from, and learn control of your powers.”

“I don’t have powers,” Neil began before Wymack cut him off with a look and a quick, 

“Don’t bullshit me, you just ran at almost 50 miles an hour away from us.”

Wymack finally stood up from where he crouched, tossed a paper onto Neil’s chest, and waved for Kevin and Andrew to follow him away. 

Neil was left lying on his back, dewdrops soaking into the fabric of his sweatshirt and heart racing. Once he could stand up from the ground, he glanced at the paper that’d fluttered to the grass, now collecting spots of water. He snatched it up after a moment’s thought and stuffed it in his duffel bag. It was simply one more belonging, not an option. The invincibility it offered Neil was not real; there was no such protection, no such place his father could not reach him. It was ironic, really, how Neil was born with the power of super speed, yet he couldn’t run fast enough. But running was his only plan. 

And so, Neil ran.


End file.
